"Delta continues to make substantial investments in New York, and our terminal project at JFK is among the most significant," said Delta Chief Executive Officer Richard Anderson. "Our new facility is designed to meet the needs of the world's largest and most competitive aviation market with significant benefits to our customers, employees and the city of New York for decades to come. We look forward to our continued partnership with JFKIAT, Schiphol and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey on this ambitious project."

"Today's event continues the momentum and emphasizes our excitement for this project," said Jos Nijhuis, president and CEO of Schiphol Group. "We're proud to partner with Delta, a member of SkyTeam, as it strengthens its New York hub and brings about these positive changes for Terminal 4, which will reaffirm its status as the 'Terminal of Choice' at JFK International Airport."

Alain Maca, president of JFKIAT, LLC, which operates Terminal 4 added, "We're proud to be part of this ambitious expansion project which will greatly expand our capacity and help fulfill the original vision for Terminal 4. Today's groundbreaking and Delta's commitment to this project bring us a step closer to realizing that vision. The expansion will bring about enhancements and improvements that will enable us to maximize the efficiency of our operation and boost our ability to serve the flying public."

"I want to thank Delta Air Lines and Schiphol for embarking on a vast project that will not only fulfill the vision for Terminal 4, but will enhance the functionality, experience and options at JFK and the entire Port Authority aviation system. Delta Air Lines, with its New York hub, is a valued partner at both our biggest and smallest airports and we look forward to our continued collaboration," said Port Authority Executive Director Chris Ward.

"Through large and much-needed construction projects, we are able to continue to drive economic development in the region by creating both on-airport jobs and construction-related work. Projects like these not only benefit the travelers that pass through our doors, but also the communities that our facilities call home," said Port Authority Deputy Executive Director Bill Baroni.

"The expansion of Terminal 4 at JFK Airport is a welcome economic development project that will generate employment opportunities in our community," Senate President Pro-Tempore Malcolm A. Smith said. "This substantial investment not only stimulates our local economy, it will significantly improve air travel for the 11 million passengers who utilize the Delta terminal at JFK each year. I commend Delta Air Lines, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and John F. Kennedy Air Terminal for breaking ground today on this exciting project."

Terminal 4 improvements and customer benefits

Currently, Delta operates predominantly out of Terminal 2 for its domestic flights and Terminal 3, internationally. The expansion of Terminal 4 – which has been successfully managed by JFKIAT for more than a decade – will replace the outdated Terminal 3 facilities and enhance the customer experience for the 11 million passengers Delta serves at JFK annually. Delta anticipates that customers will experience an improvement in operational performance through dual taxiways, resulting in reduced taxi times and better on-time performance. They also will experience improved inter-terminal passenger connectors between Terminals 2 and 4.

The expanded Terminal 4 will have nine new international gates on the B Concourse. Customers also will benefit from enhanced baggage claim areas, and expanded Customs and Border Protection area. In addition, the consolidation of two passenger security checkpoints will create a more efficient, passenger-friendly, post-security environment for retail and food and beverage offerings.

Delta customers will benefit from the airline's ability to continue expanding its international network, which currently includes nonstop service to 96 global destinations from JFK and more than 1,200 weekly departures. International service includes nonstop flights to Africa, Europe, the Middle East, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, with new service to Reykjavik, Iceland beginning in June 2011.

Economic impact to the region

Since making a strategic decision to build New York into a hub earlier this decade, Delta has made major investments across the region, boosting its economic impact to more than $13 billion annually. Delta's current JFK operation generates 49,000 jobs in the region. The Terminal 4 expansion project will stimulate economic development regionally through direct on-airport jobs and construction related work, creating an additional 10,000 jobs in the New York Metropolitan Region by 2014. Over the next 60 months, the $1.2 billion project will generate $500 million of personal income in the region and $1.6 billion of economic output from the purchases of goods and services.

When completed, the total economic impact of Delta's New York operation will contribute more than $19 billion annually to the state.

Expansion project highlights

With construction underway, completion of phase one and relocation of Delta's Terminal 3 operations to Terminal 4 is anticipated in May 2013. Delta's JFK terminal project includes: the expansion of Concourse B at Terminal 4, including nine new international gates; the construction of a passenger connector between Terminal 2 and Terminal 4; expanded areas for baggage claim, Customs and Border Protection, and, ultimately, the demolition of Terminal 3, which will be completed for aircraft parking in May 2015.

About JFKIAT

JFKIAT LLC, which operates Terminal 4 at John F. Kennedy International Airport, is a 100% subsidiary of Schiphol USA (SUSA), a company within the Amsterdam-based Schiphol Group, a leading airport operator. JFKIAT is the only private, non-airline company to be selected by the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey to operate a terminal at JFK. The 1.5-million –square-foot Terminal 4 opened in May 2001 and reached an annual passenger volume of 9.5 million air travelers in 2009. Terminal 4 is one of the largest terminals in the New York area, serving nearly 40 international and domestic airlines.

Statements in this news release that are not historical facts, including statements regarding our estimates, expectations, beliefs, intentions, projections or strategies for the future, may be "forward-looking statements" as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All forward-looking statements involve a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the estimates, expectations, beliefs, intentions, projections and strategies reflected in or suggested by the forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the cost of aircraft fuel; the effects of the global recession; the effects of the global financial crisis; the impact of posting collateral in connection with our fuel hedge contracts; the impact that our indebtedness will have on our financial and operating activities and our ability to incur additional debt; the restrictions that financial covenants in our financing agreements will have on our financial and business operations; labor issues; the ability to realize the anticipated benefits of our merger with Northwest; the integration of the Delta and Northwest workforces; interruptions or disruptions in service at one of our hub airports; our increasing dependence on technology in our operations; our ability to retain management and key employees; the ability of our credit card processors to take significant holdbacks in certain circumstances; the effects of terrorist attacks; the effects of weather, natural disasters and seasonality on our business; and competitive conditions in the airline industry.

Additional information concerning risks and uncertainties that could cause differences between actual results and forward-looking statements is contained in our Securities and Exchange Commission filings, including our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended Dec. 31, 2009 and our report on Form 10-Q for the quarterly period ended June 30, 2010. Caution should be taken not to place undue reliance on our forward-looking statements, which represent our views only as of Nov. 19, 2010, and which we have no current intention to update.